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MONEY: The Lost Decade may be the Lost Epoch unless we act

The Lost Decade – The decade has been awarded a cute name, but it’s not very accurate

For Immediate Release

May 07, 2010

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As of December 31, 2009, the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the S&P 500 Stock Index, the NASDAQ and the EAFE were all lower than they were on December 31, 1999 — a lot lower. The NASDAQ itself is 44% lower than it was 10 years ago — you know, when you were worried about Y2K.

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Such diversification proved its worth, as gains in some asset classes were able to offset losses in others.

Surely some might have exited the last decade with a lower net worth than when they started. They are likely lamenting the fact that they’ve “lost” 10 years of wealth creation opportunity.

But the bulk of our clients, by contrast, have more money today than they did 10 years ago, thanks to the smart dual strategies of continuing to invest and diversifying.

Who says you need a rising stock market to make money?

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Unfortunately, the collapse in the market is going to cost the nation greatly in it’s mind. It has demonstrated several things that, like the Great Depression scared generation of people, (1) the total failure of Wall Street; (2) the corruption of politicians; (3) the ineptitude of bureaucrats.

That will hang like a millstone around our necks forever.

We have to address the National Debt, the Federal Deficits, the unfunded liabilities of Social Security, and the out-of-control Federal Gooferment, the fiscal crisis of the States, inflation, and the rape of the public treasuries.

We have several fundamental issues to “fix”: (a) welfare; (b) warfare; and (c) confidence.

We’re not going to have a “rising stock market” until we do. So we better figure out how to make money in a down market.